Speaker 1 0:01

Welcome to the Catholic Sobriety Podcast Minisode . These shorter episodes provide quick tips and information that you can refer back to when you need it most so you can achieve and maintain your desired level of sobriety . I am your sobriety coach and host of this podcast , christy Walker . Let's get started podcast . Christy Walker , let's get started . Hello and welcome to today's mini-sodes .

Speaker 1 0:32

Earlier in the week , I created a reel on Instagram If you don't follow me there , you can find me at thecatholicsobrietycoach on Instagram . So I posted this reel this week and I just used kind of a trending sound to do it and it was a fun little thing to do . But in it I asked the question I'm nervous about how life will look like without alcohol , how do I even start this journey , or something like that was similar to that , and I gave three tips on how to get started . So I want to share those with you today . I also wanted to share another thing . So obviously you are listening to this podcast . Thank you so much . I'm so glad that you're here and I have almost 100 episodes . I will say I went back and listened to some of my earlier episodes and they're not great , but they do have some good content in them . So if you can get through the way that they sound and the way that I'm talking , then God bless you and you'll probably be able to glean some information from those episodes .

Speaker 1 1:43

I did want to point out a couple of episodes that I think would really help with this . The first that I would recommend is episode 24 , and that is on navigating the stages of change from a Catholic perspective and the reason why I think this is a great podcast episode . If you are trying to figure out , you know , is alcohol a problem ? Okay , it is a problem . What do I need to do to fix it Is to ask yourself or see what stage of change you're in . I detail the six stages and I talk about how to move yourself through those stages to get to the point where you can find out is this something that I want to pursue ? Do I actually need help to detach from alcohol ? The other episode that I would recommend is episode 67 , and that is eight signs it might be time to take a break from alcohol . So definitely go check those two out and that might help you if you're still kind of on the fence or you're still discerning . But I do have a lot of different episodes , so go look through those .

Speaker 1 2:56

I guess , technically , I'm giving you four tips today , because that's one tip . Now here are the other three tips that I gave over on Instagram . The first one is to make a list . So grab a piece of paper , fold the paper in half . On one side , write all the things alcohol gives me . On the other side , write all the things alcohol takes away . Obviously , alcohol gives you some things , or you wouldn't be consuming it , you wouldn't be misusing it . So write all those things .

Speaker 1 3:32

Just be really honest with yourself . This is just for you to look at . Write down the things that alcohol gives you and then write down all the things that alcohol takes away from you . What this does is it gives you clarity about whether alcohol is really causing that much of a problem . Maybe you can try to moderate it . If it's significantly an issue for you and there's some really serious things that it's taking away from you , you probably should consider eliminating alcohol , at least for a time .

Speaker 1 4:07

The second thing that I would recommend is to ask yourself if I continue to consume alcohol in the amount and frequency that I am now and if it increases , what will my life be like a year or two from now . Journal about that , get with the Lord on that , invite him in to this question and be very honest and vulnerable with yourself . Like what would life be like if I keep drinking this amount and frequency ? How often you drink ? Is it daily , is it on the weekends , is it once a month ? I don't know , but you do so . Go ahead and journal about that and then you can look at it and determine whether or not it's a significant problem or something that needs tweaking . Or if you're at a stage where you need some coaching around sobriety , some extra support , or if it's something more than that and you feel like you need extra support because you have a disordered attachment that could be alcohol use disorder , then I would suggest contacting your physician and talking with them about it for sure , and then they can point you in the direction . There's also Catholic in Recovery . There's the I Thirst Initiative . I just had Keaton Douglas on my podcast earlier this week and of course , there's Alcoholics Anonymous .

Speaker 1 5:44

I am always happy to meet with you to do an inquiry call if you're not really sure what you need or if you need other recommendations . Just because you talk with me doesn't mean you have to work with me . I try to make sure that I provide all kinds of resources and information so that when someone does meet with me , they leave the meeting knowing exactly what they want to do . And then the third thing kind of goes along with that . I want you to ask yourself if you've determined that this is a problem and you need to do something . I want you to ask yourself what am I willing to do to make this change ? And then I want you to ask yourself what am I not willing to do ? This is going to help give you some insights into what type of support or help you're going to be needing or looking for . Again , if you need help with that or need recommendations , I'm here for you . I'm always happy to meet with you . You can click the book now button on my website and that will just . That's not going to book an appointment . That'll just get you on my calendar for an inquiry call .

Speaker 1 6:57

Now I do have a couple of free resources that can help you gain clarity and confidence around your drinking . The first one is brand new . It's called Enjoy an Alcohol-Free Weekend . It's a four-step plan that will help you rein it in through the weekend so that you can see how to prepare and plan and then get through the weekend alcohol-free . The second one is a little more intensive . It's also a free guide and it's called Drink Less or Not at All a Catholic Guide to Freedom . It has all kinds of tools in there . It's also a free guide and it's called Drink Less or Not at All A Catholic Guide to Freedom , has all kinds of tools in there . It's about 12 pages and it's a great resource . So that's it for today's episode .

Speaker 1 7:40

Again , these mini-sodes are your questions that you want answered by me . I'm happy to do that here on my podcast on these mini-sodes . I'm happy to do that here on my podcast on these mini-sodes . They are also questions that either I've been asked in the past or something that's come up in a coaching session . If you want to send me a question , just click the send text button in my show notes . If you are on YouTube , you can leave a comment with your question and I will add that to my list too . But you can leave a comment with your question and I will add that to my list . Well , that wraps up today's episode of the Catholic Sobriety Minisode . Thank you so much for joining me and please be sure to subscribe to this podcast , so you don't miss a thing . And remember I am here for you , I am praying for you . You are not alone .